The Europa Incident
by ElfVampireVulcanJediSaiyan
Summary: Changed the title because 'Of Lost Ships and Old Friends' really doesn't fit. Chapter 7 is up, it's a bit odd, but it gives insight into our evil dude's motives
1. An Old 'Friend'

Of Lost Ships and Old Friends  
by Rachel (a.k.a. Elf/Vampire/Vulcan/Jedi/Thingy)  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek (though that would be cool) and am writing this purely for fun. Don't sue me, I'm broke. The only thing I own is T'Kaia, Europa, and all made up characters and stuff  
  
Disclaimer of a Different Kind: I've only been watching Star Trek since 8:30 PM April 15th this year, so don't expect me to sound like an expert or anything, but it's the coolest thing I've ever seen. If you love my story, or it's awful, please tell me.  
  
Chapter 1: An Old 'Friend'  
A usual day on the starship Enterprise. Kirk had just received orders from Starfleet Command to search for the U.S.S Europa, which had failed to report back for over two months on their interstellar exploration mission and was last seen in an entirely remote sector of the galaxy. They had just completed a mission to rescue a colony on a dying planet, so the ship was jam packed, but the order to search for the Europa was a priority order and they could not wait. They were cruising through empty space, sensors on full alert.  
The leader of the colonists, Staitaka, an older middle aged human male, approached the captain.   
"Please, Captain Kirk, take my people to a starbase! Besides, you won't find anything concerning the Europa anyway," He pleaded. It had been weeks since the colony of 400 had evacuated and the Enterprise had twice the usual amount of personel, everyone except Spock and the Captain had had to share his or her quarters with a colonist.  
"Captain," Mr. Spock said suddenly, "Sensors indicate a small ship just ahead, about shuttlecraft size."  
Captain Kirk ignored him. got up out of his chair and looked at the readings, then up at the viewing screen. Staitaka left the bridge in a huff. Sure enough, there was a shuttlecraft floating dead in space ahead of them.  
"It's markings...it's from the Europa," Kirk observed.   
"All power in the shuttlecraft has been directed to the life support systems, and our sensors show no signs of working communications devices aboard. Also, there is only one humanoid life form on the shuttlecraft. One that is alive, but barely functioning," Spock informed him.  
"Mr. Sulu, prepare the tractor beam to bring the shuttlecraft aboard." Kirk ordered.  
"Yes, Captain," Sulu replied.  
"Spock, get McCoy and meet onboard the shuttlecraft as soon as we bring her in."  
Spock and Kirk got into the lifts.  
  
When the shuttlecraft was brought onboard, technicians had to be brought over to break inside. As McCoy, Spock, and Kirk arrived, the technicians were busy slicing into the side of the hull.  
"The shuttlecraft was sealed from outside, Sir, we can't get her open," one of the technicians told the Captain as the three approached.  
McCoy looked quizzically at the Captain. "Sounds like whoever is onboard may have been shut in for a reason. But why?"  
"I assume we shall find out," Mr. Spock replied, "They have finished with the hole." Kirk slowly approached the hole in the side of the shuttlecraft and walked in. Spock and McCoy followed.  
They found Kirk hunched over a body. He got up and revealed what looked like a Vulcan female. She was absolutely beautiful, at least by human standards. She wore a blue Starfleet uniform, and beside the sharply pointed ears and slightly greenish cast to her pale skin, she looked almost like a human. Her sharp face was framed by shoulder length jet-black hair. Her greenish-brown eyes were glazed over, dazed. Her most noticeable feature was a large green gem she wore around her neck.  
All three men (yes, that includes Spock) had expressions of complete shock on their faces. "T'Kaia," Spock whispered softly in disbelief. McCoy knelt down and began checking to see if she was still breathing.  
Kirk shot Spock an odd look. "You know her too?"  
Spock's eyebrows shot up to just below his hairline. "We grew up together for about seven years, then her family left Vulcan. Then, we trained together at the Starfleet Academy. Her father was human, like my mother, Captain Andrei Jackson of the U.S.S. Straker. When exactly did you meet her, Captain?"  
"Uhhh..." Kirk began, not really wanting to tell Spock exactly how well he knew T'Kaia Jackson. They had met on a star base near Rigel about a year ago, and had gotten to know each other quite well.  
"T'Kaia? T'Kaia..." McCoy whispered to her. She showed no signs of movement. "We really should get her to sickbay now. There, I could probably revive her."   
Kirk was still in a state of disbelief. He shook himself and said "Of course, Bones, sickbay. Just do your best to bring her back."  
  
Several hours later, T'Kaia awoke to find herself in a sickbay that reminded her too much of the Europa. She had a hell of a headache, but was otherwise glad to be in one piece. She looked up in shock to see two old friends and an old flame staring back at her. And yes, T'Kaia is capable of such, she is more emotionally like her human father than her Vulcan mother, who died when T'Kaia was very young and didn't have an opportunity to turn her into a logical robot (or a normal Vulcan, depending on your viewpoint on the issue). Anyway...  
"Good Lord," she muttered to herself, "First I'm imprisoned in a shuttlecraft by my own captain, now I wake up to see Bones, Spock, and JIM???" She said these last few words a bit louder. "Are you guys real?"  
"I assure you, T'Kaia, we are perfectly real," Mr. Spock replied in his usual logical manner. He gave T'Kaia a look that she remembered quite well. She sighed.  
"Okay, I know it's you, Spock. That's exactly how you'd respond. What am I doing here?" T'Kaia asked, looking from McCoy, to Kirk, then back up at Spock.  
"That, T'Kaia, is something we were hoping to learn from you," Kirk replied.  
She shook her head; she still had a dazed expression. "No, actually, I can barely remember myself. And what I can remember makes no logical sense. The last thing I remember is Captain Ghol sealing me inside the shuttlecraft, but I can't remember why or what was happening."  
"So you have no clue where the Europa may be now?" Kirk questioned.  
At the sound of the name 'Europa', T'Kaia gave a start. "Nn...nno, I mean, I...I don't know." She began to shake. She made a face, as if swallowing liquid nitrogen. Then, T'Kaia's face went back to it's usual cynical demeanor.  
McCoy walked closer to her and rested his hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, T'Kaia, just try to get some rest."  
She smiled up at him. "Okay, Bones, just give me time." T'Kaia stretched for a moment and resettled herself in bed. She shook her head again (a favorite gesture of hers). "My oldest friend, my classmate back at the academy, and Jim Kirk all on the same ship." She shook her head again. "It should be impossible. At least all my other old friends aren't here."  
"And who would they be?" Kirk asked half-heartedly.  
T'Kaia appeared to be deep in thought. "Good Lord, I know about half the galaxy...but let me see. Well, there's Uhura, she and I shared a room at Starfleet Academy; then there's Montgomery...oh, yes, Scott was his last name. Never met a fellow with better taste in liquor. Then there's old Pavel Chekov, and of course my old sparring partner, Hiraku Sulu. But then again, the odds of me meeting any of them again are approximately 103987508 to one."  
Spock raised his eyebrows again; Kirk and McCoy just sort of stared in awed silence.   
"Was it something I said?" T'Kaia asked.  
The intercom sounded. "Captain Kirk to the bridge please," Uhura called.  
  
Please tell me whether or not I should write the next chapter! 


	2. T'Kaia's Problem, Complaining Colonists,...

Of Lost Ships And Old Friends   
  
Chapter 2:T'Kaia's Problem, Complaning Colonists, and They STILL Haven't Found the Europa  
  
Captain Kirk made his way up to the bridge, with Spock in tow. Staitaka met him as soon as he stepped out of the lift.  
"Captain Kirk, with all due respect, this is getting outrageous! We are still dawdling in empty space! Why aren't you taking us to a starbase, as were your orders?"  
Kirk sighed. "In due time, Lieutenant Commander Staitaka. I've been trying to make it clear to you that my search for the Europa is still a priority order?"  
"Well what progress have you made in sifting through space juink?" Staitaka asked, in reference to the shuttlecraft.  
"First Officer T'Kaia Jackson of the Europa," Spock replied.  
Staitaka was silent for a moment. But only a moment. "Well, then, what has she told you?"  
"Commander Jackson is suffering from an extreme head injury, " Kirk stated, "She is currently in no condition to answer questions."  
"Then why is she standing right behind you?" Staitaka retorted.  
Indeed she was, with Dr. McCoy right behind her. T'Kaia (much to McCoy's protest) insisted that she was fine and approached Kirk. "Captain, I'd like to help you in any way possible. Do you mind if I speak to you in private for a moment?"  
Staitaka wasn't too wild about the idea; Captain Kirk took it as an opportunity to get away from him. She pulled Kirk and Spock into the lifts along with McCoy.  
Once inside, T'Kaia's look of composure dropped immediately. "Jim, I'm sorry, but I don't remember anything from the last day aboard the Europa. Just the ship's surgeon injecting me with something and Captain Ghol sealing me inside the shuttlecraft. I'm sorry, Jim, I'm sorry."  
"Her story checks out Jim," McCoy added, "I found traces of lorinate in her blood stream. That stuff is illegal, used for extreme memory wipes. T'Kaia's lucky she can even remember her name."  
"And yet you can remember everything else?" Spock asked.  
"Yes," T'Kaia replied, "Bones tested my memory on other things as soon as he realized I couldn't remember my last day. In all other respects, my memory is flawless."  
They got off the lift and walked into one of the breifing rooms. They each took seats around the table.  
"Do you remember the last course plotted on the Europa? That may give us a lead," Kirk asked.  
T'Kaia thought for a moment. "I think the planet was called......Yotari IV...or was it VI?"  
No one else had heard of the place either. "Spock, as soon as you get the chance, run a computer check for anything that even remotely sounds like what she just said," Kirk ordered.  
Spock nodded. "Would it also help to pull up everything on the Europa, Captain?"  
"Yes, yes of course," Kirk replied. "T'Kaia, can you tell us what you remember about the ship?"  
"Well, in appearances, it's just like the Enterprise. It's serial number is NCC-1705. But the crew..." she shuddered for a minute.  
"Let me guess, not the best people in the galaxy?" McCoy asked.  
"It wouldn't have been that bad if it hadn't been for Captain Ghol. I can't imagine how he got to the captaincy in the Federation. He's cruel hearted, has a deep seated fear of any species that isn't human, and treated the ship's rats with more respect than the crew."  
"What do you mean by that?" Spock asked.  
T'Kaia took on a sarcastic tone. "Well, he once beat up a yeoman for questioning an order, he called me a 'half-breed witch' on a regular basis, and kept the crew living in fear. The ship's medical officer was his brother in law and they basically ran things. Oh yeah, and he could beat me in single combat."  
This meant nothing to Kirk, but Spock raised his eyebrows and McCoy did a double take at the last comment. T'Kaia, unbeknownst to Kirk, had a reputation for being one of the best fighters in the fleet. In self defense classes at the academy, she had been undefeated.  
"And you didn't report him?" Kirk questioned.  
"We were all too afraid of what he'd do to us if we did," T'Kaia replied. She involuntarily gave a shudder. "And I was the longest serving officer under him. Most others begged for a transfer within a week. I've been on the Europa for seven years."  
Kirk was shocked. "T'Kaia..." He reached across the table and took her hand. She moved away.  
"No, Jim. Pity is the last thing I want right now. Acording to Bones here, I've been asleep for over a week. I have catching up to do. Just do me a favor and don't mention the Europa when you see me. I don't want to think about it for at least a day. Now where's the rec room on this ship?"  
Kirk smiled. "Bones, why don't you show T'Kaia around, Spock and I should get back to the bridge."  
"Sure, Jim," McCoy said. 


	3. A Cat Named Spock

Of Lost Ships and Old Friends  
  
Chapter 3: A Cat Named Spock  
  
Kirk was sitting in his chair on the bridge in deep thought. Spock hadn't dug up anything even remotely close to the planet T'Kaia had named in his search of the ship's database. He had, however, found the history of the Europa under Captain Ghol.   
It read that Captain Ghol was 6'7", had silvery eyes and a completely bald head, and was a human. He had taken command of the Europa seven years ago, when it was first launched. Kirk knew this already, he had been to the ceremony. Ghol and First Officer T'Kaia Jackson had been the longest serving people onboard. Several things stuck out distinctly from the report. No crew member had EVER taken shore leave in the seven years the Europa had been running except for the Captain and his brother in law, medical officer Jai. These two were also the only crew members to make a communication from the ship other than a routine report and to ask for a transfer. And, most remarkable, was that the non-human crew members asked to be transfered more often, and also sustained signifigantly more 'accidental' injuries than the human crew.  
All this went to support T'Kaia's explination of life onboard the Europa. And what troubled Kirk most was that it didn't sound like the Ghol he had met at all. When he met him seven years ago, Ghol seemed charming, tolerant, calm, polite, a perfect candidate for captain. Kirk wondered what could cause a man to go wrong like that.  
Suddenly, "Shuttlecraft docking bay, Captain."  
Kirk switched the communicator on. "Kirk here."  
"We found a...cat."  
"WHAT?"  
"We found a cat in the shuttlecraft, sir. You might want to ask Commander Jackson whether or not a cat was sealed in with her, 'cause we just found one."  
Kirk let out an exasperated sigh. "A cat. Okay, if it's that important I'll be right down." He switched the comm off. "Not as if we have anything better to do," Kirk commented to himself, "Spock, go get T'Kaia and meet me down in the docking bay."  
"Yes sir."  
  
Mr. Spock walked into the rec room. He found T'Kaia and McCoy engrossed in a game of 3D chess. T'Kaia smirked and made a move. "Checkmate, Bones."  
McCoy sat back in his seat and crossed his arms. "Never was my game anyway. You should challenge Spock sometime, he's better at this sort of thing. Just don't tell him I said that."  
"Why, thank you, Doctor," Spock said. He had been standing behind McCoy as he said it. McCoy turned around quickly. "Don't scare me like that, Spock."  
"T'Kaia, Captain Kirk wants us to meet him down by the shuttlecraft," Spock said, ignoring McCoy's protest.  
  
In the docking bay, Kirk walked in to see one of the technicians holding, just as advertised, a cat. The cat was a sort of greenish white except for a black splotch on it's head, in a pattern that made it look like a human with hair. It's ears were even more long and pointy than normal for a cat. The cat had fiercely intelegent brown eyes.  
Kirk laughed when he saw it. The cat jumped down from the technician's arms and rubbed up against Kirk's legs. Kirk scooped it up and looked it in the face. "You know," Kirk said, "It looks almost like..."  
"SPOCK!" T'Kaia shouted as she walked in and saw the cat. The cat leaped away from Kirk and bolted towards T'Kaia and Spock as they entered the room. T'Kaia got down on her knees and embraced the cat. It purred happily. "Oh, Spock, I missed you so much! I'm so glad you managed to follow me onboard. You're so smart, my angel."  
Kirk laughed out loud, even harder than before. "You named your cat after Spock?" He tried his best to supress his laughter as he noticed the poisonous glare T'Kaia was giving him.  
T'Kaia stood up with Spock (the cat, not the vulcan) in her arms. "Yeah, so? He looks like him, that's all." She was blushing furiously as she said this.  
The vulcan Spock chose this moment to speak up. "I fail to see the resemblance."   
"Yeah, I see one vital difference," McCoy said, "The cat is sort of cute. I don't think that description could ever apply to Spock."  
T'Kaia was about to object, but then thought better of it. "I'm just glad that my cat is alive," she said instead. "Ghol never really liked him. I always thought Spock here would end up getting kicked out of the airlock when I wasn't looking." At this point, the cat had found a perch on T'Kaia's left shoulder.  
Kirk, still waging a war with his laughter said "I should thank little Spock for showing up, I needed a break like this."  
Uhura's voice came over the intercom. "Bridge paging Captain Kirk. We're receiving a distress call, please report to the bridge."  
Kirk sighed. "Oh well, looks like it's back to work. T'Kaia, I don't want the cat running wild all over the ship, I'd hate to be reminded of the last time a small furry creature was brought aboard the ship."  
He and Mr. Spock left, and McCoy had begun teasing T'Kaia about Spock.  
  
Note: I felt the need to lighten the mood a little as the next chapter won't be so bright and sunny. And also, Spock is a great name for a cat. Chapter four will be up in 2 days at the latest, I have school to contend with too (sadly). 


	4. Captain Ghol

Of Lost Ships and Old Friends  
  
Chapter 4: Captain Ghol  
  
Kirk strode onto the bridge. Uhura turned around to face him as he passed her. "Captain, distress call coming from an unknown solar system. I'm trying to ID the ship now, sir."  
Kirk sat down in his chair again, fully alert, ready for anything. Well, almost anything. But what Uhura said next threw him completely. "Captain, it appears the distress signal is comming from the U.S.S. Europa!"  
"Put it on visual, Uhura." Kirk said. At that moment, T'Kaia and Spock chose to re-enter the bridge. Spock the Cat was still perched on T'Kaia's shoulder.  
Captain Ghol appeared on the viewscreen, his silvery-violet eyes blazing with a firey malice. The first person Ghol noticed was T'Kaia. Spock the Cat bristled and hissed at the sight of his former tormenter. Ghol made a snakelike noise, almost like he was hissing back. Pain and hatred blazed in the woman's eyes as she raised her head to stare into the eyes of her former captain. "Ghol." She spat the name like a curse.  
Ghol faced Kirk and addressed him with a voice like honey and razorblades. "I commend you on your patience, Captain Kirk. As far as I can tell, you have put up with the witch and her furball for about a day without having to slap her back in her place. Now try it for seven years."  
T'Kaia was absolutley silent, Kirk could tell that she was trying her hardest not to scream.  
"Ah, her 'logical' half has chosen this time to turn on," Ghol said sarcastically, "Funny, she used to spend most of her time crying, that is, when she wasn't thinking about that lucky fellow she named the cat after." Ghol snorted. "She's some Vulcan."  
"You of all people, doubting my Vulcan heritage, Ghol?" T'Kaia lashed out with sarcasm, "You hated me because of it. And you know from long experience that my blood runs green."  
"Captain Ghol, did your false distress call have any real signifigance, or was it's purpose to emotionally assault a Federation officer?" Spock asked calmly, moving to stand by T'Kaia's side. She stood at attention, still as stone.  
Ghol gave a false chuckle. "Your first officer, Kirk? None of my crew would have dared move if another captain was on the viewscreen," he commented.  
"Sometimes it's better to rule with an open heart and mind rather than an iron fist," Kirk said.  
Ghol shook his head dismissivley. "The words of a weak fool. You will find, Kirk, that with an 'open mind and heart' you can feasibly rule a ship, but my aim is much higher than that. I intend to go for the galaxy, one planet at a time."  
"Why am I not surprised?" T'Kaia laughed ruefully. "Your interest in inflicting pain could not be contained in your crew, you need many more lives to destroy!" She said, unable to stop herself anymore. "What I wonder is why you didn't do this in the first place? Why wait seven years?"  
Ghol glared at her. "I had to get rid of you. It is impossible to be in complete controll of someone who still has hope. You gave the crew your strength, so I spent seven long years keeping you under my boot heel until I could feasibly get rid of you and make my move. With you gone, however, the crew has been fine with obeying my every order."  
Ghol waved a hand and the viewscreen panned backward. The view of the Europa's bridge expanded, revealing two humanoids in primative clothing being held at phaser-point. One was male, the other female. They had bluish skin, violet cat-like eyes, white hair, and pointed ears. They were like no species previously known to the Federation.   
"My prisoners, Captain. The first of many millions. The Europa is currently orbiting a Class M planet full of them. They are suspicious, war-like, fearfully ignorant, and have just recently discovered fire. They were the perfect place to start. My crew is working on slowly turning the entire population of this planet into an army of slaves. Moving planet by planet, with everyone under me in fear of losing thier lives, I shall have the galaxy in a matter of months."  
Ghol began typical villian maniacal laughter. "Uhura, as soon as he stops, make a call to Starfleet Command and inform them of our situation," Kirk whispered.  
He wasn't quiet enough for Ghol, however. "I don't think so, Captain. Your communications station should be down by the end of this call. A small device I attatched to the cat should now be eating away at your communications console. I'd say you have about 30 seconds until you cannot communicate at all."  
Ghol grinned. "And T'Kaia has even shorter time to live. Ever notice the necklace she's wearing? It's set to detonate in 5..."  
"Uhura, run!" T'Kaia shouted. She hastily undid the necklace as the communitations officer complied.  
"4.."  
T'Kaia threw the necklace at the the communications console with all her might.  
"3...2..." The explosion rocked the bridge. Captain Ghol's image flicked off of the viewscreen. The console was practically gone, but no one and nothing else was damaged.  
"What was that for?!" Uhura exclaimed.  
T'Kaia sighed. "T'Kaia just saved her own life, as well as my own, as I would have been caught in the explosion," Spock said from T'Kaia's side. "In all actuality it was the most logical move, since communications would have gone out anyway."  
"Uhura, did you manage to locate the Europa before the explosion?" Kirk asked calmly.  
"Yes, sir."  
"Very well, give them to Chekov. Chekov, plot us a course to wherever the Europa last was, if what Ghol said was true, there is a new species that needs our help," Kirk commanded.  
"Yes, Keptin," Chekov replied.  
At the sound of the name 'Chekov', T'Kaia whirled around. "Pavel? And Hiraku Sulu too? Where did you guys come from?"  
"You've been on the bridge before, T'Kaia and never noticed us," Sulu replied. However, he did this with a smile of recognition for T'Kaia.  
"I had other things on my mind. So, how's it going?"  
As T'Kaia engaged Sulu and Chekov in conversation and Chekov laid in the course, Spock spoke to Kirk.  
"Captain, what about the possibility that Ghol was lying and the whole thing was a trap?"  
"That's a chance we'll have to take, Spock." Kirk replied.  
Lieutenant Commander Staitaka stepped forward. "Captain, I protest strongly! My people are not happy about having to share living space in an overcrowded ship while going prancing around in unknown corners of the galaxy! WHEN are you returning us to where we belong?"  
"Lieutenant Commander, there are the lives of the people on that planet at stake, I cannot delay helping them to drop you off! Please be patient," Kirk pleaded.  
T'Kaia whirled around to face Staitaka. "I recommend, Lieutenant Staitaka, that you not push this with the Captain, he's had quite a lot to deal with since I was found this morning," T'Kaia said.  
"No one asked you to say anything, woman," Staitaka replied.  
T'Kaia gave him her best glare. "That's Commander Jackson to you, Lieutenant Commander Staitaka. I believe you are speaking to a superior officer."  
Staitaka shrank back and scrambled away. Kirk yawned spontaniously. "Sulu, what time is it?"  
"24 hundred hours, sir."  
"I believe that most of us should be in need of some sleep in that case," Kirk commented. He got up out of his chair and commanded "Wake up the highest ranking officers who are asleep right now and ask them to take over. And get someone to fix communications," to no one in particular.  
"Yes sir." An officer said.  
T'Kaia, Chekov, Sulu, Uhura and Spock followed the captain onto the lifts. "Captain, where should I sleep?" T'Kaia asked.  
"Everyone is already sharing with one of Staitaka's people," Uhura commented.  
"Yes, and they're even using sick bay," Kirk remembered. A smirk crossed his face. "Since he and I are the only people onboard not already sharing our quarters, you have the choice sharing with me or Spock. Sorry, but with these colonists, the ship is double it's full capacity."  
As T'Kaia noticed the look in Kirk's eyes she automatically said "No, Jim. If you're thinking of restarting what we finished about nine years ago..."  
"It was the furthest thing from my mind, T'Kaia. Feel free to stay with Spock then. According to most sources, you seem to like each other quite a lot." Kirk's smirk returned with this last comment.   
Chekov and Sulu chuckled, but T'Kaia silenced them with a look. "Fine, then," T'Kaia said. She was trying to use the Vulcan half of her mind to avoid blushing.  
  
Chapter 5 will come, eventually, as soon as I'm sure where the plot is going from here. And yes, I do like Spock too much, thanks for noticing :). 


	5. Someone Who Understands

Of Lost Ships and Old Friends  
  
Author's note: Yay! I finally managed to write again! Someone suggested that I skip lines between paragraphs, so I'm doing that from now on. Notepad isn't the easiest thing to work with though, but my Dad accidentaly deleted Microsoft Word, so this is all we have.  
  
Chapter 5: Someone Who Understands  
  
At 4 AM, T'Kaia slipped quietly out of Spock's room and made her way down the corridor in search of solitude. She had many reasons for this. For one thing, she had only slept for a few hours because her head was still full of unbearable pain from her wound. For another, Spock (the Vulcan, the cat had fallen asleep hours ago and hasn't moved since) had finally fallen asleep and began to snore (something that just made the headache worse). And for another, she needed to cry. And needed to do it alone.  
  
Pride and perfection were everything to T'Kaia. She had been beating herself up for letting her calm slip on the bridge. As long as everyone else thought she was perfect, she didn't care what the truth inside was. She hadn't cried in the last seven years because doing so would shatter the veneer of bravery she needed to survive Captain Ghol. Also, she didn't want her friends and crewmates to think of her as weak. She hadn't taken more rest for her wound because she didn't want it to look like a simple severe head wound could keep T'Kaia Jackson down. So she wandered through the Enterprise, guided only by severly dimmed lights, searching for a place where she could let her feelings out. Alone. For the first time in seven years.  
  
She found that all of the rooms were full of sleeping colonists, from the briefing rooms to the rec rooms, right down to a few places along the corridor. T'Kaia found this out the hard way by tripping over one. She hurriedly whispered an apology then moved on. She came to one of the briefing rooms and noticed that only two colonists were inside asleep. T'Kaia thought that this would have to do.  
  
T'Kaia walked to the furthest corner in the room, away from both the door and the colonists. She felt herself step on something on the way, but disregarded it. T'Kaia wondered at first where to start, but as soon as she let down her natural Vulcan guards against emotion, the tears and pain came back to her on thier own. She spent hours in that corner. She would latch on to a terrible memory, cry about it for the time that was due, then let the memory go and never think of it again. T'Kaia did this every ten years; that way it looked like she never cried. Her Vulcan mother had taught her to do it when the strict doctrines of Vulcan society got to her too much. It typically lasted thirty minutes at most, but this time around it was different.  
  
At presicely 06:00 hours, an alarm went off next to the two sleeping colonists.T'Kaia still hadn't finished crying when one of them walked up to her and knelt down beside her. She looked up into the face of Lieutenant Commander Staitaka. T'Kaia quickly turned her face away again in shame. "Promise to tell no one that you saw me like this," T'Kaia demanded a bit more sharply than she'd intended.  
  
"I promise," Staitaka whispered. "I had intended to find you today anyway. I needed to tell you that..." the words caught in his mouth and a bitter look crossed his face for a moment. "...I'm sorry, Commander Jackson. I feel terribly for the way I acted on the bridge yesterday. I intend to find Captain Kirk and tell him the same."   
  
T'Kaia studied him for a moment. "I can see in your eyes that you mean it. I accept the apology." She reached up and wiped her eyes with her sleeves.   
  
"What's wrong?" Staitaka asked. Then, realizing the obvious, he said "Well, I mean, more than usual."  
  
T'Kaia gave him a rueful smile. "Nothing you don't know. I only let myself cry once every ten years."  
  
"Looks like you needed it this time around," Staitaka commented. Then he changed the subject. "I really do feel sorry for the way that I've acted. I mean all day yesterday too, before they even pulled you aboard. I don't know what made me be so downright annoying. It's just..."  
  
Staitaka shivered for a moment. Images of the colony that they had abandoned exploding into thousands of tiny particles flashed through his mind. He flinched as the memory of his home's death sank in again. "You can never know what it is like to be the leader of a group who has just lost everything, Commander Jackson."  
  
T'Kaia stopped herself from saying 'Oh yes I can' and instead said "You feel like the whole thing is your fault. Like there was something you could have and should have done to save your home. Like everyone's blood was on your hands..." she trailed off with a faraway look. Yes, she knew the feeling all too well.  
  
"That's about the size of it," Staitaka said in wonder, "But no one died on my colony. Commander Jackson? Commander?"   
  
T'Kaia seemed lost for a moment, remembering the home that she'd lost. "Four survivors..." she whispered, shaking her head. Staitaka reached out and shook her for a moment. She gave a start and then said "Forgive me, Staitaka. Bad memories, things of the past." She looked straight up into his eyes. "Just try to remember, it wasn't your fault. There was absolutely nothing you could have done."  
  
Staitaka nodded. "Yes, I shall certainly keep that in mind. You might want to be going now, Commander. It's 06:10, the Captain might be wondering where you are." T'Kaia nodded in agreement. She slowly got up. "By the way, Staitaka, please call me T'Kaia. I'm sorry I've been so sharp with you, I'm not myself either."  
  
Staitaka smiled. "And call me Ryan."   
  
T'Kaia walked towards the door, stepping deftly over the colonist woman who was still sleeping. As she opened the door, she turned around. "Remember, you never saw me crying."  
  
"Saw you doing what?" Staitaka replied innocently. T'Kaia laughed and sauntered out of the room.  
  
The colonist woman yawned and sat up. "Who was that, dear?" she asked Staitaka.  
  
"Marjorie, I think it was someone who understands. But I'm not sure." Marjorie Staitaka rolled over and went back to sleep as Ryan Staitaka shook his head in amazement that his wife had missed the entire exchange.  
  
"You never cease to amaze me, Marjie."  
  
  
Note (Again): I know that was way too short, but I was so glad that I finally wrote something that I had to put it up. Tell me whatcha think, and be honest. The much more eventful chapter six will go up probably on the weekend of June 8th (the 7th is my last day of school) 


	6. Harker, Rhinar, and Midori

(Author's Note: I am SOOOOOOOO sorry that I haven't written any more since June, please forgive me, but for the first time in a long time, I have actually HAD a social life and had not had time to write. Also, I've been devouring Star Trek novels. Anyway, on with the story!)  
  
Chapter 6: Harker, Rhinar, and Midori  
  
"Not again!" Jim Kirk sighed heavily as the report came in. Apparently, another shuttlecraft from the U.S.S. Europa had been found drifting dead in space, halfway on the Enterprise's course to the Europa's current location. This time, however, there were three life forms aboard.  
  
"Sounds like the Europa should be running out of shuttlecrafts," McCoy said dryly. "Who did you have in mind for the reception committee this time?"  
  
"Just you, Mr. Spock, and T'Kaia, Bones. Now shouldn't we head down to the shuttlecraft bay?"  
  
"Yes, but where is T'Kaia?"  
  
Dr. McCoy did not need to wait long for the answer to his question. T'Kaia walked onto the bridge; she was engrossed in conversation with a yeoman carrying a clipboard. She turned to Captain Kirk. "Looking for me?"  
  
Kirk explained the situation to T'Kaia who frowned slightly.  
  
Spock turned from his work station to face them. "The question is," he said, "Why does Captain Ghol continue to put his victims, seemingly alive, into shuttlecrafts? Wouldn't it be more suitable for his purposes and consistent with what we know of him to have them killed? With what we know of the character of Captain Ghol, there is no logic in this behavior."  
  
Kirk nodded, "A good question, but one we can reflect on later. Right now, we should find out who is in the shuttle this time." He rose from his command chair and crossed to the lift, with Spock, McCoy, and T'Kaia following.  
  
While they were on the lifts, T'Kaia muttered something incoherant, followed by a soft chuckle. "What was that all about?" McCoy asked her, a confused look crossing his features.  
  
"Nothing. I just think I have a good idea of at least one of the people who will be on that shuttlecraft," she said with a smile.  
  
"A friend of yours?" Kirk asked. T'Kaia just shook her head, smiling.  
  
Kirk's communicator beeped suddenly. He took it out and activated it. "Kirk here."  
  
"Shuttlecraft bay here, sir. We've all ready broken into the craft, sir, and taken the three occupants into sickbay. All of them were unconscious but one, and she was very...vocal, sir."  
  
"Good work. We'll go to sickbay from here, Kirk out." Kirk closed his communicator and T'Kaia smiled triumphantly. "I was right," she said. "It's got to be her. 'Vocal' is the perfect way to describe Ensign Midori."  
  
"Who?" Spock questioned.  
  
"You'll see, trust me." T'Kaia said nothing else until they got to sickbay.  
  
When they arrived, T'Kaia rushed over to a bed in which a human male with shoulder length brown hair and a youthful face lied unconscious. "Eric!" She whispered softly, kneeling by his side. Then, suddenly remembering where she was, T'Kaia stood up as though she had never spotted Eric.  
  
A whiny, feminine voice interrupted this quiet moment. "Commander Jackson? T'Kaia? What are you doing here? We thought you had been killed!" They whipped thier heads around to spot a pretty woman with coppery hair and skin the color of Spock's blood sitting up in the next bed over. She suddenly winced and lifted a hand to the back of her head. Dr. McCoy walked over to her and injected a hypo into her arm. "There, that should do something about the pain. I'm Dr. McCoy, Chief Medical Officer." He smiled at the green-skinned woman reassuringly.  
  
"I am Ensign Midori of the U.S.S. Europa, communications officer in training. And if you don't mind my asking, where the HELL am I?"  
  
"You are aboard the starship Enterprise. I'm Captain James T. Kirk," Kirk said warmly, "Welcome aboard, Ensign. You're an Orion?"  
  
"So what if I am?" Midori replied.  
  
"Midori," T'Kaia snapped, "You're speaking to a superior officer!"  
  
"Ah yes, I forgot about you being Miss Perfect, T'Kaia. I'll rephrase that: So what if I am, SIR?" Midori replied sarcastically.  
  
"I meant no offence, Ensign, I was merely curious. It's just that I've never heard of an Orion in starfleet before," Captain Kirk said, in an effort to calm Ensign Midori down.  
  
Midori looked at Kirk scathingly. "My species has nothing to do with my interest in Starfleet, Captain."  
  
Kirk walked out of earshot of the others and motioned for T'Kaia to join him. "Did I hit a nerve or something?" He asked as soon as he was sure that Midori couldn't hear.  
  
T'Kaia snorted. "No. Midori's always been like that. I suspected that Ghol would have dispatched her just to get her to shut up," T'Kaia said, only half kidding.  
  
"Who is that Eric fellow you were so drawn to?" Kirk asked, raising an eyebrow suspiciously.  
  
"Lieutenant Commander Eric Harker, our chief engineer...and my best friend. I can't imagine why the captain would get rid of him, without him I don't know how Ghol will keep the ship running. Your Mr. Scott would enjoy a long talk with Eric once he wakes up." T'Kaia said, with a poorly concealed smile.  
  
Kirk smiled, "No doubt he would. Who is the other officer?" He said, gesturing to where an elderly human man with a crisp white beard lied in a comatose state next to Ensign Midori (who continued to complain loudly about the pain in her head where she'd been knocked out).  
  
"That's Commander Joseph Rhinar, the Europa's historian."  
  
Captain Kirk nodded and he and T'Kaia made thier way back to where they had left Ensign Midori with Spock and Dr. McCoy. Midori had fallen back to sleep.  
  
"Why did you let her fall asleep, Bones? I had a lot of questions to ask Ensign Midori!" Captain Kirk protested.  
  
"I put her out myself, Jim. Her whining was becoming unbearable. It's probably better for all of us if you can wait for one of the more...agreeable officers to wake up. I don't think that Miss Midori liked you much," McCoy said with just a hint of dry humor.  
  
Jim sighed and started to leave. "I want answers!" He exclaimed in frustration, slamming his fist down on the table in front of him. "Mr. Spock, return to the bridge, you have command. I'll be in my quarters. Bones, call me the second either of them wakes up." Jim Kirk practically yelled this command as he left the sickbay in a hurry.  
  
Spock, McCoy, and T'Kaia exchanged glances. "Now where did that come from?" T'Kaia asked in bewilderment.  
  
"The captain has been under a considerable amount of stress as of late," Spock supplied.  
  
"Yeah," Dr. McCoy said, "But not that much stress. This can't be good. Maybe Lieutenant Commander Staitaka was giving him trouble again this morning."  
  
T'Kaia shook her head. "That can't be it. I spoke with Staitaka this morning, he seemed downright remorseful that he had ever bugged Jim."  
  
Spock excused himself and left to take command of the bridge, while T'Kaia and McCoy continued to wonder what had set Kirk off like that.  
  
(Author's note again: I shall try to write more in the near future, but it might be awhile, so I apologise in advance) 


	7. The Creature (Or in which we discover th...

(Author's Note: OK, this chapter takes a bit of an odd twist. Now we see the point of view of our villian. And it's NOT Ghol. Who is it? Have fun guessing. If you remember the episode 'The Wolf in the Fold' where there was a villian that fed off of emotions, I sort of got the idea from there. Also, that episode where the Klingons and the Enterprse crew were set with equal arms and numbers at each other to maintain a constant stream of hate to feed an evil creature. But enough babbling.)  
  
Chapter 7: The Creature (Or in which we discover the REAL Bad Guy)  
  
The Creature sat in one of the Enterprise's many rec. rooms, taking in the sight of all of the pitiful physical life forms. The sight made it sick. Not only were they inferior, but they were generally happy, and therefore of no use to the Creature. The Creature's need to feed off of negative emotions such as hate, fear, and lust were completely unsatisfied. On the Europa, it had been like a feast; everyone was afraid of the Captain's wrath. And the Captain himself had gone from a generally likable fellow to a miserable tyrant during the time that the Creature had been aboard.  
  
But that was the Creature's fault. It had the ability to not only to inhabit the body of a living being, but it also could controll the actions of up to two people to a limited extent. So for the seven years that the Europa patrolled space, the Captain and the medical officer were under the influence of the Creature.   
  
The Creature looked back on it's accomplishments on the U.S.S. Europa happily. Too happily. The body the Creature was inhabiting gave an involuntary spasm and some of the negative emotions that the Creature fed upon fled from it's essence, the equivalent of a human throwing up. The spirit of hate drifted from the Creature and became ingrained in the mind of one of the nearby crewmembers.   
  
The Creature shook it's head. It concentrated on controlling it's feelings, focusing on the resentment it felt for the people around it. The 'illness' had been happening too often since the Creature had left the Europa, displacing anger, fear, and the like on various people. The incidents were going unnoticed, but if the Creature continued to get sick, it would not be able to escape detection.  
  
The Creature focused on it's plans for the future. It intended to use Ghol and the Europa further, systematically taking over the galaxy, planet by planet, ship by ship, the Enterprise and the planet the Europa was currently orbiting being the first two steps. They would start with the various Class 'M' planets containing primitive life, and continue on to conquer the free peoples of the galaxy. The new world that the Creature intended to create from the ashes of the old would have every citizen in the galaxy living in pain, fear, and resentment of his fellow person. And the Creature would never have to worry about starving again.  
  
The Creature walked out of the rec hall in hopes of finding some of the more emotional crewmembers. The Vulcan was playing chess in the vicinity of the creature and the mere presence of one so at peace made the Creature sick.  
  
(A/N: Yes, I will go back to the plot involving Harker, Rhinar and Midori in the next chapter. Just wanted to give you a preview of what's to come. So, don't hate Captain Ghol, he's just a mere puppet. Also, who do you think the Creature is? Have fun guessing! Chapter 8 goes up in the next few days) 


End file.
